Stephen Champlin was an officer in the United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

 during the War of 1812

War of 1812

The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...

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Born in Kingston, Rhode Island

Kingston, Rhode Island

Kingston is a village and a census-designated place in the town of South Kingstown, Rhode Island, United States, and the site of the main campus of the University of Rhode Island. Much of the village center is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Kingston Village Historic...

, Champlin entered the Navy as a sailing master 22 May 1812. He commanded the schooner

Schooner

A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....

 Scorpion

USS Scorpion (1813)

The USS Scorpion was a schooner of the United States Navy during the War of 1812. She was the second USN ship to be named for the scorpion....

 in her capture of the British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 Little Belt

HMS Little Belt (1812)

HMS Little Belt was a 3-gun sloop-of-war of the Royal Navy's Lake Erie fleet. She served in the War of 1812 when the USS Scorpion captured her during the Battle of Lake Erie....

 during the Battle of Lake Erie

Battle of Lake Erie

The Battle of Lake Erie, sometimes called the Battle of Put-in-Bay, was fought on 10 September 1813, in Lake Erie off the coast of Ohio during the War of 1812. Nine vessels of the United States Navy defeated and captured six vessels of Great Britain's Royal Navy...

, and later in the War of 1812 was wounded when his ship was taken on Lake Huron

Lake Huron

Lake Huron is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. Hydrologically, it comprises the larger portion of Lake Michigan-Huron. It is bounded on the east by the Canadian province of Ontario and on the west by the state of Michigan in the United States...

. Retired in 1855, Captain Champlin was later promoted to Commodore

Commodore (rank)

Commodore is a military rank used in many navies that is superior to a navy captain, but below a rear admiral. Non-English-speaking nations often use the rank of flotilla admiral or counter admiral as an equivalent .It is often regarded as a one-star rank with a NATO code of OF-6, but is not always...

 on the retired list, and died in Buffalo, New York

Buffalo, New York

Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...

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Two ships have been named USS Champlin

USS Champlin

USS Champlin may refer to:, a Wickes-class destroyer launched in 1918 and decommissioned in 1922; sunk in tests 1936, a Benson-class destroyer launched in 1942 and decommissioned in 1946; scrapped in 1972...

 for him, as was Champlin, Minnesota

Champlin, Minnesota

Champlin is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 23,089 at the 2010 census.U.S. Route 169 serves as a main arterial route in the city.- Geography :...